THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Türkiye’s eastern Aegean province of Denizli has 91.2 per cent of oregano cultivation areas and meets 89.6 per cent of the world’s oregano need. Denizli oregano is exported to the world market.
Türkiey, the first and only country that comes to mind when it comes to oregano (thyme), meets 89.6 per cent of the world’s need. Denizli, which has also 91.2 per cent of thyme cultivation areas, supplies almost all of the production.
As a result of the intensive training and extension activities carried out by Denizli Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry between 1994 and 2000, oregano cultivation areas, which were first reflected in the statistics as 1750 hectares in 2000, have soared exponentially over the years. In 2023, 26 thousand 983 tonnes of oregano was produced in 19 thousand 714 ha area in the region. While Pamukkale, Güney, Çal, Buldan, Buldan, Bekilli, Tavas and Kale districts stand out as the places where the production is the most intensive, Denizli, which has 91.2 per cent of Turkey’s thyme cultivation areas, meets 89.6 per cent of the production.
Stating that the world’s need for oregano is met from Denizli, Denizli Provincial Director of Agriculture and Forestry Şakir Çınar said, “Our country is the gene centre and homeland of many thyme species. A significant part of the thyme, which was traded before it was cultivated, was collected from the high parts of the Aegean and Mediterranean Regions overlooking the coast and exported. In the 1990s, due to the increase in demand in the world markets, R&D studies on the cultivation of oregano plants were intensified.”
“Especially after the 2000s, important developments have been experienced in oregano production and trade with the introduction of the species known as ball thyme (Origanum onites L.) to field cultivation in Denizli. This type of thyme cultivated in our province was registered as ‘Denizli Oregano’ by the Turkish Patent Institute in 2021,” he added…
